Why does it seem like all videos of animals and their kids are just the mom and the kids? Are most animal fathers just there to mate and move on?
In: Biology
Males of most species do “just” impregnate the female and move on. You might ask the question “why do we even need males, can’t we all just be females who clone themselves, wouldn’t that be more efficient?”. The reality is that for life to be successful, it needs to constantly compete with and overcome itself. Nature has found an efficient solution: Most complex species have two sexes, one of which bears the burden of reproduction, and one of which endures selection. Peacocks are a great example: The only males that survive having such absurd plumage on average have excellent genes and therefore by only having males with excellent genes reproduce the fitness of the species is improved. There are exceptions, but for most species, having the females being reliable baby machines and the males being experimental prototypes works pretty well. Humans are much more androgynous than most animals because it is normal for human males to invest in the care of their offspring.
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